‘Undoubtedly the strongest commodities set’, Twenty Essex has ‘some outstanding practitioners and the widest selection of very talented lawyers in the commodities area’. One market source remarks that it is ‘the premier set for commodities work with multiple options at every level of seniority’. Michael Ashcroft KC, Michael Collett KC and Timothy Young KC are among the most prominent silks in this area of law. Ashcroft KC acted for the seller, Tintrade Inc., in Septo Trading Inc v Tintrade Inc, a fuel oil dispute concerning where title passed, who bore the risk of off-specification cargo in context of blending and supply from multiple shore tanks through pipelines, and whether cargo was, in fact, off-spec. Among the juniors, Daniel Bovensiepen, who acted as sole counsel defending a Commercial Court claim totalling about $765,000 for alleged contamination of a cargo of gasoil, and Oliver Caplin, who acted as sole counsel in a five-day oil trading dispute in the Commercial Court, are among many who are considered to be at the top of their game.
Commodities in
London BarTwenty Essex
Testimonials
Set
‘Undoubtedly one of the top sets for shipping and trade work.’
‘A great set for commodities disputes as well as shipping and related arbitration work. Huge spread of talent at all levels of qualification and expertise. They seem to be behind all current developments and cases in their areas of expertise.’
‘Real strength in depth. Even if our first choice counsel is not available we are referred to another strong candidate.’
’20 Essex is my preferred chambers for international trade disputes. They have great strength in depth amongst juniors and silks.’
’20 Essex Street offers the widest selection of very talented lawyers in the commodities area.’
Clerking
‘The clerks are professional and helpful, and understand the commercial constraints that come with certain cases, and are willing to compromise where necessary, which is an essential quality.’
‘Senior clerks Arron Zitver and Christopher Theobald are excellent and will always assist 100%. In a difficult situation faced with emergency litigation they are a great help.’
‘Arron Zitver is efficient and helpful.’
‘Excellent. Special mention to Arron Zitver. Everything a good clerk should be.’
‘Great service. Anthony Carroll is very good at developing the practice. We have been impressed with the day-to-day to service from Sam McDowall, Matt Dowdall and Robert Wheeler.’
7 King's Bench Walk
7 King’s Bench Walk is ‘one of the pre-eminent sets and very good strength in depth’ and ‘the number of good juniors coming through the ranks is encouraging’. Robert Bright KC is one of the standout silks for commodities cases and ‘continues to excel in this area’; he represented the claimant Septo Trading Inc v Tintrade Inc, which went to the Court of Appeal and currently has an application to the Supreme Court pending. The set also has some of the strongest juniors in Sandra Healy, Richard Sarll and the ‘clear, thoughtful and smart’ Jessica Sutherland. Healy handled a high-value dispute Quadra Commodities S.A. v XL Insurance Company S.E. and Others, which concerned a large-scale fraud in the Ukrainian grain industry and raised issues regarding the passing of title to the grain in the circumstances of the fraudulent scheme.
Testimonials
Set
‘Extremely strong overall. Many counsel are leaders in their field.’
‘7KBW has a strong team overall. The number of good juniors coming through the ranks is encouraging.’
‘One of the pre-eminent sets and very good strength in depth.’
‘I have been very impressed by the strength in depth and quality of the 7KBW team.’
‘I instruct barristers at 7KBW regularly – a strong shipping set which offers good value for money.’
Clerking
‘Gary Rose is very good to work with, responsive and understanding of what is involved. The firm has an excellent relationship with the clerks.’
‘Always helpful. Eddie Johns and Gary Rose are the two we have worked with most recently. They have been great in terms of contacting the court and going above and beyond.’
‘Excellent service from Joe Clayton and Gary Rose.’
‘Good team. Helpful relationship with Gary Rose and Declan Gray.’
‘Eddie Johns is a pleasure to deal with. He is always willing to be flexible on rates where he can.’
Quadrant Chambers
Quadrant Chambers is ‘a go-to set for international trade and commodities work’ and has ‘good strength in depth amongst juniors and silks’. One source remarks that it its members are ‘commercial in their thinking and easy to work with’. The ‘sharp, charming and persuasive’ Simon Rainey KC is among the foremost silks handling commodities cases, as are Simon Croall KC and ‘extremely talented black letter KC’, Chirag Karia KC. Karia KC handled a high-value series of interconnected disputes for Unipec Singapore, the trading arm of Sinopec, concerning the ownership of cargoes of oil laden on four different ships and claims against an oil terminal in Singapore. Among the set’s many talented juniors are the ‘confident yet understated’ Max Davidson, the ‘responsive and helpful’ Koye Akoni and ‘incredibly quick-thinking’ Ben Gardner, who acted for Bunge in an arbitration claim brought by Marasca for payment of US$7m allegedly due as the price for a cargo of corn.
Testimonials
Set
‘Quadrant is my go-to set. I find they tend to be commercial thinking and easy to work with.’
‘A very good for shipping and commodities. They have improved their commodities offering significantly in the past few years. They are also strong in admiralty work.’
‘Quadrant has good strength in depth amongst juniors and silks.’
‘Always happy to work with Quadrant. My practice focuses on commodities and they have numerous barristers available that have extensive expertise in this area.’
‘Quadrant is a go-to set for international trade and commodities work.’
Clerking
‘Daniel Westerman is an excellent clerk. He is responsive and commercial.’
‘Accommodating in terms of fees and practical matters. Honest and direct about counsels’ availability.’
‘Great service, very responsive.’
‘First-class.’
Essex Court Chambers
Essex Court Chambers remains ‘one of the go-to sets for commodities and shipping, with great depth both at silk and junior level’. It has an impressive track record in both areas of law and is particularly highly regarded in wet and dry shipping cases, as well as high-value fraud matters. Nathan Pillow KC, who is ‘a fantastic example of what a modern-day silk should be’, is the set’s most active silk in commodities matters; he led the representation of a claimant in a Commercial Court claim between Turkish and Russian interests for breach of a long-term contract for the supply of oil. Among the juniors, the ‘user-friendly, intelligent, commercial and pragmatic’ David Walsh acted for Trafigura in a claim against various Sudanese governmental agencies concerning crude and gasoil supplies.
Testimonials
Set
‘Essex Court is one of the go-to sets for commodities and shipping. They are probably number one is this area. Great depth both at silk and junior level.’
Clerking
‘I have found Essex Court to be very good and quick in responding to queries put to them. David Banks is always helpful.’
The 36 Group
The 36 Group ‘has a good range of counsel and is a strong set with heavyweight barristers’. Within the group, 36 Stone is a dedicated commodities, shipping and international trade set, members of which have extensive experience in shipping and commodities contractual documents including bills of lading, charterparties, contracts of affreightment and commodities issues arising in shipping contexts. Their work spans all manner of commodities cases in the civil courts, arbitrations, inquiries, and other tribunals in the UK and overseas. Vasanti Selvaratnam KC is the set’s most prominent silk and she handled a SIAC arbitration concerning supplies of Russian coal to Korean buyers, raising legal and expert issues as to whether buyers has a contractual right of cancellation. Ravi Aswani, who has extensive experience in GAFTA and FOSFA arbitrations, and Charles Debattista are among the most visible juniors in the commodities area.
Twenty Essex
Testimonials
Set
‘Undoubtedly one of the top sets for shipping and trade work.’
‘A great set for commodities disputes as well as shipping and related arbitration work. Huge spread of talent at all levels of qualification and expertise. They seem to be behind all current developments and cases in their areas of expertise.’
‘Real strength in depth. Even if our first choice counsel is not available we are referred to another strong candidate.’
’20 Essex is my preferred chambers for international trade disputes. They have great strength in depth amongst juniors and silks.’
’20 Essex Street offers the widest selection of very talented lawyers in the commodities area.’
Clerking
‘The clerks are professional and helpful, and understand the commercial constraints that come with certain cases, and are willing to compromise where necessary, which is an essential quality.’
‘Senior clerks Arron Zitver and Christopher Theobald are excellent and will always assist 100%. In a difficult situation faced with emergency litigation they are a great help.’
‘Arron Zitver is efficient and helpful.’
‘Excellent. Special mention to Arron Zitver. Everything a good clerk should be.’
‘Great service. Anthony Carroll is very good at developing the practice. We have been impressed with the day-to-day to service from Sam McDowall, Matt Dowdall and Robert Wheeler.’
7 King's Bench Walk
7 King’s Bench Walk is ‘one of the pre-eminent sets and very good strength in depth’ and ‘the number of good juniors coming through the ranks is encouraging’. Robert Bright KC is one of the standout silks for commodities cases and ‘continues to excel in this area’; he represented the claimant Septo Trading Inc v Tintrade Inc, which went to the Court of Appeal and currently has an application to the Supreme Court pending. The set also has some of the strongest juniors in Sandra Healy, Richard Sarll and the ‘clear, thoughtful and smart’ Jessica Sutherland. Healy handled a high-value dispute Quadra Commodities S.A. v XL Insurance Company S.E. and Others, which concerned a large-scale fraud in the Ukrainian grain industry and raised issues regarding the passing of title to the grain in the circumstances of the fraudulent scheme.
Testimonials
Set
‘Extremely strong overall. Many counsel are leaders in their field.’
‘7KBW has a strong team overall. The number of good juniors coming through the ranks is encouraging.’
‘One of the pre-eminent sets and very good strength in depth.’
‘I have been very impressed by the strength in depth and quality of the 7KBW team.’
‘I instruct barristers at 7KBW regularly – a strong shipping set which offers good value for money.’
Clerking
‘Gary Rose is very good to work with, responsive and understanding of what is involved. The firm has an excellent relationship with the clerks.’
‘Always helpful. Eddie Johns and Gary Rose are the two we have worked with most recently. They have been great in terms of contacting the court and going above and beyond.’
‘Excellent service from Joe Clayton and Gary Rose.’
‘Good team. Helpful relationship with Gary Rose and Declan Gray.’
‘Eddie Johns is a pleasure to deal with. He is always willing to be flexible on rates where he can.’
Quadrant Chambers
Quadrant Chambers is ‘a go-to set for international trade and commodities work’ and has ‘good strength in depth amongst juniors and silks’. One source remarks that it its members are ‘commercial in their thinking and easy to work with’. The ‘sharp, charming and persuasive’ Simon Rainey KC is among the foremost silks handling commodities cases, as are Simon Croall KC and ‘extremely talented black letter KC’, Chirag Karia KC. Karia KC handled a high-value series of interconnected disputes for Unipec Singapore, the trading arm of Sinopec, concerning the ownership of cargoes of oil laden on four different ships and claims against an oil terminal in Singapore. Among the set’s many talented juniors are the ‘confident yet understated’ Max Davidson, the ‘responsive and helpful’ Koye Akoni and ‘incredibly quick-thinking’ Ben Gardner, who acted for Bunge in an arbitration claim brought by Marasca for payment of US$7m allegedly due as the price for a cargo of corn.
Testimonials
Set
‘Quadrant is my go-to set. I find they tend to be commercial thinking and easy to work with.’
‘A very good for shipping and commodities. They have improved their commodities offering significantly in the past few years. They are also strong in admiralty work.’
‘Quadrant has good strength in depth amongst juniors and silks.’
‘Always happy to work with Quadrant. My practice focuses on commodities and they have numerous barristers available that have extensive expertise in this area.’
‘Quadrant is a go-to set for international trade and commodities work.’
Clerking
‘Daniel Westerman is an excellent clerk. He is responsive and commercial.’
‘Accommodating in terms of fees and practical matters. Honest and direct about counsels’ availability.’
‘Great service, very responsive.’
‘First-class.’
Essex Court Chambers
Essex Court Chambers remains ‘one of the go-to sets for commodities and shipping, with great depth both at silk and junior level’. It has an impressive track record in both areas of law and is particularly highly regarded in wet and dry shipping cases, as well as high-value fraud matters. Nathan Pillow KC, who is ‘a fantastic example of what a modern-day silk should be’, is the set’s most active silk in commodities matters; he led the representation of a claimant in a Commercial Court claim between Turkish and Russian interests for breach of a long-term contract for the supply of oil. Among the juniors, the ‘user-friendly, intelligent, commercial and pragmatic’ David Walsh acted for Trafigura in a claim against various Sudanese governmental agencies concerning crude and gasoil supplies.
Testimonials
Set
‘Essex Court is one of the go-to sets for commodities and shipping. They are probably number one is this area. Great depth both at silk and junior level.’
Clerking
‘I have found Essex Court to be very good and quick in responding to queries put to them. David Banks is always helpful.’
The 36 Group
The 36 Group ‘has a good range of counsel and is a strong set with heavyweight barristers’. Within the group, 36 Stone is a dedicated commodities, shipping and international trade set, members of which have extensive experience in shipping and commodities contractual documents including bills of lading, charterparties, contracts of affreightment and commodities issues arising in shipping contexts. Their work spans all manner of commodities cases in the civil courts, arbitrations, inquiries, and other tribunals in the UK and overseas. Vasanti Selvaratnam KC is the set’s most prominent silk and she handled a SIAC arbitration concerning supplies of Russian coal to Korean buyers, raising legal and expert issues as to whether buyers has a contractual right of cancellation. Ravi Aswani, who has extensive experience in GAFTA and FOSFA arbitrations, and Charles Debattista are among the most visible juniors in the commodities area.